E Coli infections are usually associated with the young and the elderly. However, there are certain strains that affect people of all ages. So much so that, sometimes, they spread to various organs necessitating hospitalisation. Doctors says that cross-contamination, drinking unsafe water and eating cut fruits from hawkers cause the infection. SHAlINI SAKSENA tells you more
With the change in season come many problems. Dehydration, cholera, diarrhoea and other water-borne diseases are common. When 43-year-old Vivek Kumar landed in an emergency ward of a private hospital in the Capital with acute diarrhoea little did he know that he would end up in an ICU, that too for 15 days. He was detected with a strain of E Coli bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract which had entered through the digestive tract.
Doctors tell you that E Coli usually attacks the very young and the elderly people whose immune system is weak or those who are undergoing chemotherapy. The point of entry is either through the digestive tract or the urinary tract. While the digestive tract E Coli is common and can affect men and women equally, the urinary E Coli is common among women.
“The E Coli pathogen can cause many problems. While there is no need to panic if the body is able to retain water — input is equal to output — a visit to a physician is a must if symptoms like high fever, bloody diarrhoea, abdominal cramping, nausea and vomiting persist,” Dr SK Thakur, senior consultant, gastroenterology, Moolchand Medcity, says.
He tells you that the most common reasons for E Coli are cross-contamination (from different meats and from meats to vegetables), drinking unsafe water and eating cut fruit from hawkers. Even eating out in restaurants where one is not sure of hygiene should be avoided.
“People don’t realise that eating food being sold by hawkers can be contaminated. One doesn’t know what kind of water has been used to cook food, the hygiene standard of the food-handler and for how long the food has been left open. There are so many people who eat from places even when flies are sitting on the food. All these are places from where one can catch the infection,” Dr Thakur explains, adding that people don’t factor in the fact that when there is no electricity for hours, the food in the fridge can also get spoilt, breeding the bacteria that causes infection.
Seconds Dr Viabhav Gupta, consultant gastroenterologist at Rockland Hospital. “E Coli-related infections in the digestive tract are common, especially in summers. This is because most people don’t take care when it comes to food habits and from where they are drinking water. Even cooked food kept in the fridge and reheated is a source of infection. The fact that water intake in summers increases also leads to rise in the number of people coming to us with E Coli infections,” Dr Gupta tells you. E Coli infections can also be contracted if a patient has undergone surgery, he adds.
But it is not just the infection that enters the body through the digestive tract. E Coli infections can also enter through the urinary tract — Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) — being the most common of infections in women. This is because, in women, the urethra is much shorter and closer to the anus. “Sometimes UTI is also caused due to infection in the blood which travels to the kidney and urethra,” Dr Gupta says.
Other major reasons for UTI is reduced intake of water, poor personal hygiene (which goes down in summers due to scarcity of water) and holding the urine for long hours. Burning sensation, pain, dark colour urine, high fever and decrease in urine in comparison to water intake are common symptoms. The situation takes a turn for the worse for diabetics and the elderly. In some cases, the person may even need hospitalisation.
“If the infection travels upwards — the bladder and the kidney — it can lead to complications. Also it has been seen that most people who come for treatment of UTI stop taking the antibiotics the minute there is an improvement. People have to understand that once the medication has started, the entire course has to be taken. If stopped mid-way, chances of the infection resurfacing are high. And in such cases, it takes a very long time to treat it,” Dr Gupta says. Therefore, taking the full antibiotic course is a must.
Drinking plenty of portable water (boiled for at least 15 minutes), eating freshly cooked food and reducing eating out can help prevent infections.
FACTFIlE
Pregnant women, newborns, children & elderly are more susceptible to E Coli infection
Wash your hands thoroughly after using the bathroom or changing diapers and before preparing or eating food. One must clean their hands after contact with animals
Ensure that your hands are clean before preparing bottles, feeding infantsand before touching an infant's mouth
If soap and water isn’t available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitiser
Cook meats thoroughly
Avoid consuming raw milk, unpasteurised dairy products and unpasteurised juices
Avoid swallowing water while swimming
Prevent cross-contamination in food preparation areas by thoroughly washing the counters, cutting boards and utensils after they touch raw meat
TYPES
E Coli is of six pathotypes
Shiga toxin-producing E coli (STEC)—STEC may also be referred to as Verocytotoxin-producing E coli (VTEC) or enterohemorrhagic E coli (EHEC). This pathotype is the one most commonly heard about in the news in association with foodborne outbreaks.
Enterotoxigenic E coli (ETEC)
Enteropathogenic E coli (EPEC)
Enteroaggregative E coli (EAEC)
Enteroinvasive E coli (EIEC)
Diffusely adherent E coli (DAEC)